391 days until the Arkon Shield falls

We know even less of sorcery than we do of magic. It is a potent tool, some would say, even more so than magic, but its uses are limited by how deeply its spells draw from the spirit. —Taura Biaxal, svartalfar mystic.

I picked myself up slowly, then pretended to dust myself off to hide my embarrassment. Tara was not buying it though. Throwing back her head, she roared with laughter.

“Alright,” I said, red-faced. “You’ve had your fun now.”

“I’m sorry, Jamie, but your expression… it was priceless,” Tara said, mirth fading at last.

I didn’t dare ask her if she had been joking about her age or not. She couldn’t be younger than me, could she? But I was sure if I broached the matter again, I would have her rolling on the floor with laughter.

Apparently taking pity on me, Tara returned to the matter at hand. She pointed to the top of the carved purple steps. “The entrance to the temple is up this stairway.”

I followed the direction of her arm. The temple was a Greek-style marble building painted in swirling shades of purple. It dominated the landscape, and was likely visible from miles away. “It must draw a lot of attention,” I said.

Tara nodded. “The commander thinks that is by design. To keep players on their toes, so to speak. It certainly seems to attract enough of the local wildlife.”

I began limping up the stairway’s gentle rise. After a few steps, I noticed that Tara was not following. “You’re not coming?” I asked, looking back at her over my shoulder.

Tara shook her head. “Even if we both enter the temple at the same time, we will find ourselves in different locations. The temple doors are a portal of sorts. I’ll wait here. Take your time.” She paused, then added, “You know that you shouldn’t invest in anything still at the Neophyte rank, right?”

“Yeah, I do,” I replied. Conventional wisdom held that Neophyte-ranked Disciplines and Attributes shouldn’t be increased with Tokens and Marks. Up until they reached level ten, the learning rate of Disciplines and Attributes was many times faster than the norm. So much so that a player—unaided by the temples—could advance themselves to the Trainee rank in a matter of days. And with my newcomer buff still in effect, my Neophyte learning rate was accelerated even further.

Unfortunately, without even a basic grasp of magic, there was no way I could train it on my own. I would be forced to invest at least some Tokens in my magic.

“See you soon,” I said in farewell to Tara. Climbing up the remaining stairs, I pushed open the doors and entered the temple.

✽✽✽

A Trials message unfurled the moment I crossed the temple’s threshold.

You have exited location seventy-eight.

I was back on Wyrm Island. This time I was at its centre, only a few feet away from the gate I had left through the last time. Standing next to me was Aurora.

“Welcome back, human,” said the purple woman. “I see you managed to stay out of orcish hands.” She looked me up and down. “And level nine already. Well done. I suppose you are here to use your Tokens and Marks?”

“What are you?” I asked, ignoring her question.

Aurora did not deign to reply. She crossed her arms and glared at me.

Her response was not unexpected, but I had thought it worth a try. There was one more thing I could attempt. I drew on my will and cast analyse on the purple woman.

Analysis failed. Your skill is insufficient.

“That was rude!” Aurora snapped. “Next time mind your manners or you will regret it.”

I scratched my head, curious as to how the purple woman could punish me, but I was not willing to test her wrath. I bowed. “I apologise, Aurora. You are correct, I am here to acquire new knowledge.”

“Hmpf,” Aurora said, not appearing the least bit mollified. She waved her arm and a translucent purple window opened in front of me. “These are the Disciplines you may choose from. You have ninety Tokens available.”

A familiar list of Disciplines appeared before me. This was an area of the Trials I had spent most of my time in the wiki researching. Regardless, I combed through it to make sure there were no untoward surprises.

The Disciplines on offer were identical to the ones described in the Trials Infopedia. With the exception of the dragon magic Discipline, of course. That had most definitely not been mentioned in the wiki.

I had already decided on my levelling strategy before entering the temple, but there were a few things I wanted to confirm first. “Can I please see the Traits and Disciplines I earned from my life on Earth? From before my Induction.”

Wordlessly, Aurora waved her hand and a new window unfurled.

The knowledge you have carried over from Earth into the Trials include: the lore and scribe Disciplines, and the Quick Learner and Crippled Traits. Your skill as a scribe is at: level 6. Your skill in lore is at: level 8.

Trait: Quick Learner. Rank: 2, uncommon.

After a lifetime spent studying, you are able to grasp new concepts and assimilate knowledge rapidly. This Trait increases the rate at which your Disciplines advance through natural learning.

Trait: Crippled. Rank: 2, uncommon.

Your left foot is hobbled as a result of an unfortunate accident during your youth. This Trait impairs your movement, halving the benefits you receive from the agility Attribute.

I swallowed painfully as I read the effect of my crippling. It is what I thought. With my handicap, I would never amount to much as a warrior. Magic was my only hope of excelling in the Trials.

Banishing further doubts, I turned back to Aurora and made my first choice. “Aurora, please increase my skill in the life magic and dragon magic Disciplines to nine.”

“So noted. Your new knowledge will be instilled in your mind once you exit Wyrm Island. You have seventy-two Tokens remaining.”

I had thought long on how, at even my low level, I could assist the Outpost with magic. I suspected that as a Neophyte mage the damage I could inflict with my spells would be negligible when compared to an army of spearmen. Sadly, until I levelled up much further, even as a mage, my offensive potential would be limited—or so I believed.

It was behind the lines that I thought I would be of most benefit. After seeing the primitive healing methods Nicholas had used, I believed that there was a good chance that I could help save more lives at the Outpost with healing magic—or life magic as the Trials named it.

Unfortunately, unlike knowledge acquired through ‘natural’ learning, the Trials’ gifts were limited by a player’s level. Until I levelled up more, I would not be able to further advance my skill in dragon and life magic with Tokens.

Briefly, I toyed with the notion of maximising my skill in one or more of the other magical Disciplines as well, but I decided to stick with my original plan. “Aurora, please increase my skill in the fire, earth, water, air, and death magic Disciplines to one.”

“Noted. You have sixty-seven Tokens remaining.”

There were other non-combat Disciplines I wanted to learn, but it didn’t make sense to acquire any of them now. First, I would try training them naturally, and only after reaching the Trainee rank would I return to the dragon temple for further understanding. For now, I was satisfied with my choices. “I am done with my Discipline selections. Thank you, Aurora.”

“Very wise,” the purple woman replied. “Do you wish to use any of your Marks at this time?”

“No, thank you,” I replied. Constitution was the only Attribute I would consider raising right now, but Attribute, like Discipline purchases, were limited by a player’s level and at the moment, my constitution exceeded my level.

I turned away and headed towards the gate, but not before an irreverent wave at the purple woman that had her scowling anew. I smiled at her expression. But my humour faded quickly as I considered what came next.

I still had no spells.

The dragon temples only gifted players with foundational understanding of a particular Discipline. It did not grant them knowledge of the Discipline’s many and varied specialised abilities: Techniques. Understanding how to channel life magic did not mean I knew how to cast a healing spell. I would have to learn that separately.

From the wiki, I knew the usual way for players to acquire Techniques—including spells—was through lorebooks and trainers. And while knowledge of the rarer Techniques were closely guarded secrets in the Dominions, the more commonplace Techniques were available for purchase—at least in the cities. Location seventy-eight, of course, had no wizard trainers to tutor me.

That meant I would have to create my own spells.

Daunting as the prospect sounded, spell creation was not difficult for common, low-ranked spells—or so the wiki claimed. The higher a player’s magic skill, the better their chances were of discovering a spellform from the related Discipline. It was to improve my chances of formulating dragon and life magic spells that I had maximised my skill in both Disciplines.

Another factor in my favour was the information I had gathered from the Trials Infopedia. My research meant that I already knew of—even if only in the most non-technical sense—the most popular low-ranked spells from the standard magic Disciplines. It should be no great hardship to ‘rediscover’ them. Or so I hoped.

But when it came to dragon magic, I was on my own. I had no store of knowledge to fall back on. Nor did I have the least idea if I was capable of creating dragon magic spells. Or even if any of spells would be useful, especially at my low rank. Discovering dragon magic spells, I suspected, would require diligent practice and experimentation.

I sighed as I reached the gate. I still had a lot of work before me. With a final wave to Aurora, I stepped through the portal.

You have exited Wyrm Island. Modification request detected. Initiating update procedure.

Changes analysed…

Alterations verified…

Updates approved...

Downloading new knowledge…

…

…

Download complete. Transfer to Overworld resumed.

✽✽✽

I stepped back out of the temple with new knowledge swimming in my head and Trials notices obscuring my vision. I ignored the messages, preoccupied by something else entirely.

I was different.

A small smile stole across my face as I observed the deep wellspring of potential at the centre of my being. It was my magic. The means by which I could exert my will upon the world—and change it. It was both power and promise mixed in one.

And it was the means by which I would exact my vengeance.

My smile broadened into a grin. At last, I breathed. At last I have what I need. I returned to my study of the magic at my core. Slow-moving channels of mana extended outwards from it and into my body. They had not been there before my visit to the temple. Or if they had, I hadn’t the understanding to identify them.

Now though, knowledge of magic—the essence of it, and the weft and weave of its crafting—was mine to use. I closed my magesight. Beginning the trip back down the temple steps, I finally turned my attention to the Trials alerts hovering for attention.

You have entered location seventy-eight.

Your skill in dragon and life magic has advanced to: level 9. Mana pool unlocked.

Your skill in air, death, earth, fire, and water magic has advanced to: level 1.

You are the first player to have learned: dragon magic. For this achievement, you have been awarded: dragon lore.

Lore note: Dragon magic is a universal skill. Unlike other magic Disciplines, which are governed by a single Attribute, dragon magic is affected by all Potentials. Spells from the Discipline may draw from any combination of Attributes and Potentials.

A quiet groan escaped me as I read, then reread the lore note. Damn it, I thought. Why did dragon magic have to require every Potential? It destroyed all my carefully laid plans for Attribute enhancement. And what did this unexpected twist mean for the Discipline itself?

If the power of my dragon magic spellcasting relied on my poor Might Potential, then arguably—despite its uniqueness—my dragon magic would be weaker than other, purely magic Disciplines. I bit my lip. Had I made a mistake in choosing the Trait?

“What’s happened?” asked Tara, sounding worried. “Did something go wrong?”

I glanced up. I had reached the bottom of the stairway where Tara danced impatiently from foot to foot. I couldn’t tell her about my dragon magic, of course. It was too dangerous a secret to share.

“I just realised I don’t have any spells,” I lied with a straight face.

“Oh, that,” said Tara, understanding dawning. “Don’t worry about it. We had similar problems with our own martial Techniques. Spend some time experimenting with your magic and you’ll be sure to discover one or two spells at least. It won’t take long, I promise.”

“Ah… alright, then,” I replied while trying to keep my face from burning with shame. I didn’t like lying to her. But I had no choice.

We set off walking again. “What magic Disciplines did you learn?” Tara asked.

“Life magic and… fire magic.”

Tara’s eyes shone. “Excellent!” she exclaimed. “The medics will be overjoyed when they hear that. Let’s get you settled down somewhere quiet to practice. The sooner you figure out a healing spell, the better.”

We were making a beeline towards the tented camp, I saw. I glanced up. The sun was still high in the sky. “Will the murluks attack again today?”

Tara shook her head. “For whatever reason, the creatures only attack in the hours just after dawn. We’ve not had a single assault in the afternoons.” She tugged at my sleeve. “Move it, Jamie,” she said, almost affectionately, as she hurried me along.

She seems in a good mood, I thought. My own excitement had been spoiled by the revelation about my dragon magic though. I couldn’t just ignore the Trials information either. If I wanted my dragon spells to be viable, then I needed to alter my planned approach and advance my physical Attributes, too.

I sighed. “No, Tara. Magic training can wait.” I didn’t require much to practice magic, just a quiet spot and time. I could just as well attempt my spellcrafting at night. Right now, while the sun was still up, there was other training I needed. Especially with my newcomer buff still active. “Let’s go to the training grounds. Its time you took me through my paces.”